Expectations for Spurs’ Dylan Harper in Year 1

Harper entered his season at Rutgers as the No. 2 prospect in the class for most. And he did little to dissuade that in averaging 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists en route to one of the better one-and-done guard seasons we’ve seen in some time. At around 6-foot-6, he’s been widely expected to thrive in the NBA with creative scoring, improving play-making and solid defense.

But will be expectations actually be for Harper in his debut season?

We’ll first need to dive into San Antonio’s roster, which looks much-improved ahead of next season. They’re of course led by essential superstar Victor Wembanyama, who through two seasons has already put together all-time seasons featuring some of the best scoring and defending in the league.

In the next tier would be former All-Star De’Aaron Fox, who was just inked to a brand new max deal that will keep him in San Antonio for the long haul. Despite a lesser handful of games to end his season with the Spurs last year, Fox is still very much in his prime, able to add a scoring and play-making punch at lead guard.

Next would be reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, who wowed with better-than-expected offense for San Antonio last season, scoring 14.7 points and adding 4.1 assists. Caslte was a wing for UConn, but was expected to try his hand at lead guard for San Antonio, and did well all things considered.

Following the roster’s centerpieces are a host of talented role players that should help the Spurs to win games in the West next season: Harrison Barnes, Keldon Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, Jeremy Sochan, Devin Vassell and more.

With some of the team’s best players playing or vying for his position, as well as a fairly deep roster in general, Harper will have his work cut out for him to shine for the Spurs as a rookie. But he’s certainly talented enough to do so.

It's hard to envision anything but double-digit scoring for Harper, though it may come differently than it did at Rutgers. Despite his affinity for having the ball in-hand, he's also a proven transition and cutting threat, and will likely be doing plenty of that while the Spurs' guards work. He's certain to see plenty of on-ball reps, too, but certainly less than Fox and likely less than Castle for now.

Harper is certain to be one of the team's priority's moving forward — perhaps even their second-best player in the years to come. But his debut NBA season will likely be more about fitting in where he can and learning the league's ropes on both ends.